Unmanned flight vehicle having rotor, motor rotating the rotor and control device

ABSTRACT

An unmanned flight vehicle includes a rotor, a motor rotating the rotor, and a control device controlling the motor and the vehicle. The control device has a memory storing identification information enabling identification of a user of a communication service for receiving first control information or airspace information about an airspace in which the flight vehicle flies via a wireless base station by the unmanned flight vehicle. The control device also has a processor controlling the vehicle to communicate with the wireless base station based on the stored identification information. The processor controls i) a flight state of the vehicle based on the first control information or the airspace information received via the wireless base station by using the identification information, and ii) the vehicle based on a quality of a radio wave that the vehicle has received from the wireless base station.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/756,276, filed Feb. 28, 2018, pending, which is a § 371 nationalstage entry of International Patent Application No. PCT/JP2016/088947,filed Dec. 27, 2016, which claims the foreign priority benefit ofJapanese Patent Application No. 2015-257098, filed Dec. 28, 2015. Theentire disclosure of each of the above-identified three applications,including the specification, drawings, and claims, is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The embodiment of the present invention relates to a flight vehiclecontrol device, a flight permitted airspace setting system, and a flightvehicle control method and program.

BACKGROUND ART

A flight vehicle control device receives remote control for the flyingof a local flight vehicle that is an unmanned aircraft by communicationvia a wireless communication line. When such a flight vehicle cannotstably receive radio waves of the radio communication line, control ofthe flight vehicle may no longer be possible. On the other hand, atechnique is known for controlling the flight of an aircraft that istaking off or landing using an airstrip.

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, FirstPublication No. H11-345400.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Problem to be Solved by the Invention

However, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 requires dedicatedradio equipment for controlling an aircraft. It is difficult to installsuch dedicated radio equipment at a location for flying flight vehiclesthat are unmanned aircraft.

The object of the present invention is to provide a flight vehiclecontrol device, a flight permitted airspace setting system, and a flightvehicle control method and program that raise reliability whencontrolling the flight of a flight vehicle with a simpler constitution.

Means for Solving the Problem

A flight vehicle control device according to an aspect of the presentinvention includes: an identification information storage unit in whichidentification information for identifying a flight vehicle or a user ofthe flight vehicle is stored; a wireless communication unit thatreceives, through a wireless base station, airspace information about anairspace in which the flight vehicle flies, based on the storedidentification information; an own vehicle position measuring unit thatmeasures a position of the flight vehicle; and a flight state controlunit that controls a flight state of the flight vehicle based on thereceived airspace information and the measured position of the flightvehicle.

In the above-mentioned flight vehicle control device, the airspaceinformation may indicate a flight permitted airspace that is an airspacein which flight of the flight vehicle is permitted or a flight notpermitted airspace that is airspace in which flight of the flightvehicle is not permitted.

In the above-mentioned flight vehicle control device, the flight statecontrol unit, based on the measured position of the flight vehicle, mayswitch between: a wireless control mode in which the flight state of theflight vehicle is controlled based on control information that thewireless communication unit receives through the wireless base station;and an autonomous control mode in which the flight state of the flightvehicle is controlled based on control information stored in advance inthe flight vehicle.

In the above-mentioned flight vehicle control device, the flight statecontrol unit may set a mode of the flight vehicle to the autonomouscontrol mode in a case where a radio wave intensity that the wirelesscommunication unit has received from the wireless base station is lessthan a predetermined value.

A flight permitted airspace setting system according to an aspect of thepresent invention includes: the above-mentioned flight vehicle controldevice; and a flight permitted airspace setting device. The flightpermitted airspace setting device includes: a model information storageunit that stores flight vehicle model information indicating a model ofthe flight vehicle; a flight airspace information storage unit in whichthe identification information and the airspace information are storedin association with each other; a flight airspace setting unit that setsthe airspace information based on the flight vehicle model informationand writes the set airspace information to the flight airspaceinformation storage unit; and a communication unit that transmits thewritten airspace information to the flight vehicle control devicethrough the wireless base station.

In the above-mentioned flight permitted airspace setting system, theflight permitted airspace setting device may further include; atransmitting unit that transmits, to the flight state control unit,flight state control information for controlling the flight state of theflight vehicle, based on the position at which the flight vehicle isflying and the written airspace information.

In the above-mentioned flight permitted airspace setting system, thepermitted airspace setting device may further include: a flight vehiclepilot management unit that identifies the user of the flight vehicle.

In the above-mentioned flight permitted airspace setting system, theidentification information may include identification information thatenables identification of a user of a communication service for sendingcontrol information to the flight vehicle.

In the above-mentioned flight permitted airspace setting system, theflight airspace setting unit, based on a place of departure anddestination of the flight vehicle, may calculate estimated time of theflight vehicle arriving at the destination.

In the above-mentioned flight permitted airspace setting system, theflight airspace setting unit, based on of a place of departure anddestination of the flight vehicle and a battery charge level of theflight vehicle, may determine whether the flight vehicle can reach thedestination.

A flight permitted airspace setting system according to an aspect of thepresent invention includes: the above-mentioned flight vehicle controldevice; and a flight permitted airspace setting device. The flightpermitted airspace setting device includes: a model information storageunit that stores flight vehicle model information indicating a model ofthe flight vehicle; a flight airspace information storage unit in whichthe identification information and the airspace information are storedin association with each other; a flight airspace setting unit that setsthe airspace information based on the flight vehicle model informationand writes the set airspace information to the flight airspaceinformation storage unit; and a communication unit that transmits thewritten airspace information to the flight vehicle control devicethrough the wireless base station. The flight airspace setting unit setsa mode of the flight vehicle to a wireless control mode in which aflight state of the flight vehicle is controlled based on controlinformation that the wireless communication unit receives through thewireless base station, a case where the flight vehicle has approached,by a predetermined distance or more, airspace in which the flightvehicle is prohibited from flying.

A flight vehicle control method according o an aspect of the presentinvention includes: receiving, through a wireless base station, airspaceinformation about an airspace in which a flight vehicle flies, based onidentification information for identifying the flight vehicle or a userof the flight vehicle; measuring a position of the flight vehicle; andcontrolling a flight state of the flight vehicle based on the receivedairspace information and the measured position of the flight vehicle.

A program according to an aspect of the present invention causes acomputer mounted in a flight vehicle to execute: receiving, through awireless base station, airspace information about an airspace in whichthe flight vehicle flies, based on identification information foridentifying the flight vehicle or a user of the flight vehicle;measuring a position of the flight vehicle; and controlling a flightstate of the flight vehicle based on the received airspace informationand the measured position of the flight vehicle.

Effect of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a flightvehicle control device, a flight permitted airspace setting system, anda flight vehicle control method and program that raise reliability whencontrolling the flight of a flight vehicle with a simpler constitution.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a lineblock diagram that shows the flight permitted airspacesetting system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the outer constitution of aflight vehicle according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the flight vehicle control device accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the flight permitted airspace settingdevice according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart that shows an outline of the process procedure ofmanaging the flight of a flight vehicle in the flight permitted airspacesetting device of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram that shows an example of flight vehicle typeinformation stored in the flight vehicle type information storage unitin the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram that shows an example of flight vehicle typeinformation stored in the flight airspace information storage unit inthe first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of the flight planregistration process of the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of the flight plan changeprocess of the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of control based onairspace of the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of flight control in aflight vehicle of the first embodiment.

EMBODIMENTS FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinbelow, a flight vehicle control device, a flight permittedairspace setting system, and a flight vehicle control method and programwill be described with reference to the drawings.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a lineblock diagram showing the flight permitted airspacesetting system 1 according to the first embodiment. The flight permittedairspace setting system 1 includes a flight vehicle 2, a flightpermitted airspace setting device 3, a user terminal 4, a communicationnetwork 5, and a wireless base station 6.

The flight vehicle 2 is an unmanned aircraft as shown in FIG. 2described below. The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 sets theairspace where the flight vehicle 2 flies, and transmits airspaceinformation indicating the set airspace to the flight vehicle 2 to causethe flight vehicle 2 to fly in accordance with the airspace information.The user terminal 4 is a computer device such as a smartphone thatreceives operations of a user who is flying the flight vehicle 2.

The user terminal 4 receives an operation of the user of the flightvehicle 2, transmits the received operation to the flight permittedairspace setting device 3, and has the flight permitted airspace settingdevice 3 set the airspace for flying the flight vehicle 2. Moreover, theuser terminal 4 receives an operation of the user of the flight vehicle2, transmits the received operation to the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3, and controls the flight of the flight vehicle 2through the flight permitted airspace setting device 3.

The user terminal 4 may display a map in which a guide route of theflight vehicle 2 is shown using three-dimensional (3D) map information(three-dimensional data showing the ground surface) and the flight pathof the flight vehicle 2. The three-dimensional map information may alsoinclude structures such as buildings and topography such as mountains.The user terminal 4 may also display an image in which the guide routeof the flight vehicle 2 is indicated using ages captured by the flightvehicle 2 and the flight path of the flight vehicle 2. The flight routedisplayed on a map or an image may include arrows or colored lines forguiding the direction of movement. The display screen of the userterminal 4 may display side by side the current battery charge level ofthe flight vehicle 2 and the electric power required for moving to thedestination.

The communication network 5 relays communication between the flightvehicle 2, the flight permitted airspace setting device 3, and the userterminal 4. The wireless base station 6 is a base station for wirelesscommunication and is connected to the communication network 5 by aconnection line. The communication network 5 and the wireless basestation 6 form a network NW that provides communication services such asvoice communication and data communication to terminal equipment such asa smartphone. In the network NW, communication procedures are convertedbetween the wireless base station 6 side and the communication network 5side by a gateway provided on the communication network 5 side.

The range (cell) in which communication is possible is set for eachwireless base station 6. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the cells Z1 toZ3 (hereinbelow generally called cell Z) are respectively set for thewireless base stations 61 to 63. For example, terminal devices such asthe flight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 located in the cell Z1detect the wireless base station 61, and a management device, notillustrated, in the network NW manages that information. The flightvehicle 2 and user terminal 4 are examples of terminal devices thatcommunicate wirelessly using the network NW.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 manages the airspacewhere the flight vehicle 2 flies in units of cell Z. Airspace in theembodiment refers to a region for flying the flight vehicle 2, and forexample the range thereof is defined by latitude/longitude informationand altitude information. Each airspace is divided into a region inwhich flying of the flight vehicle 2 is possible (flight possibleregion) or a region in which flying of the flight vehicle 2 isprohibited (flight prohibited region) depending on various conditions.The setting conditions of airspace may differ depending variousconditions such as the flight vehicle 2, the user (operator), thesurrounding area, the scheduled time of flight, and the like. The flightvehicle 2 is required to fly in a range that satisfies the flightconditions.

The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 statistically stores theposition and altitude that a flight vehicle 3 has flown, and may set aflight possible airspace based on that information. A prohibited areamay be excluded from a flight possible airspace. A prohibited zone maybe a zone in which the weather is bad or a zone in which base stationhindrances occur. A prohibited zone may be a zone that the state oradministration has set as a prohibited zone. A prohibited zone may be azone in which other flight vehicles are flying at the same time as thetime at which the flight vehicle 3 is flying. A prohibited zone may be azone (region) that is crowded with flight vehicles. A prohibited zonemay be a zone through which numerous flight vehicles pass at a specifiedtime. The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 may set a flightroute avoiding a prohibited zone. A flight possible airspace may be setdepending on the specifications of the flight vehicle 3 and the user.The airspace may also contain a three-dimensional map. The airspace(airspace information) may be set on the basis of the relation withstructures and the like (three-dimensional map).

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 supports flight of theuser's flight vehicle 2 by managing regions in which the restrictions onflight conditions differ as mentioned above and performing control sothat the flight vehicle 2 does not enter flight not permitted airspaceand flight prohibited airspace.

When the flight vehicle 2 has approached a flight not-permitted airspaceor flight prohibited airspace by a predetermined distance or more, theflight permitted airspace setting system 1 (flight permitted airspacesetting device 3) may notify the user terminal 4 accordingly (with analarm). When the flight vehicle 2 has exceeded a speed limit, the flightpermitted airspace setting system 1 (flight permitted airspace settingdevice 3) may control the speed of the flight vehicle 2 to become lowerthan the speed limit. When the flight vehicle 2 has approached the speedlimit, the flight permitted airspace setting system 1 (flight permittedairspace setting device 3) may notify the user terminal 4 accordingly(with an alarm).

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the outer constitution of theflight vehicle 2 according to the present embodiment. The flight vehiclecontrol device 20 is in this example mounted on the flight vehicle 2shown in FIG. 2. This flight vehicle 2 includes the flight vehiclecontrol device 20 and a motor 24.

The motor 24 provides lift and propulsion to the flight vehicle 2 byrotating a rotor RT. In this example, the flight vehicle 2 includesmotors 241 to 244. The motors 241 to 244 rotate corresponding rotors RT1to RT4. The flight vehicle control device 20, by controlling the drivingcurrent supplied to each motor 24, can control the flight altitude,orientation and travel direction of the flight vehicle 2.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the flight vehicle control device 20according to the present embodiment. The flight vehicle control device20 includes a control unit 21, a first storage unit 22, a second storageunit 23, a GPS receiving unit 25, an attitude detecting unit 26, and awireless unit 27.

The GPS receiving unit 25 receives radio waves transmitted by a GPS(Global Positioning System) satellite. A signal for specifying theposition where the radio waves are received, that is, the position ofthe flight vehicle 2, is included in the radio waves transmitted by thisGPS satellite. The GPS receiving unit 25 converts the radio wavesreceived from the GPS satellite into a GPS signal SG, and outputs theconverted GPS signal SG to the control unit 21. Although this exampledescribes the case of the GPS receiving unit 25 receiving a radio wavetransmitted by a GPS satellite, the present invention is not limitedthereto. For example, the GPS receiving unit 25 may receive radio wavesfrom satellites other than GPS satellites, such as a quasi-zenithsatellite with high positioning accuracy.

The attitude detecting unit 26, which includes an accelerometer and agyroscope, detects the attitude of the flight vehicle 2 and generates anattitude detection signal SB.

The wireless section 27 includes an antenna, which is not illustrated,and receives a radio wave transmitted by the wireless base station 6. Abase station ID, which is information for identifying the wireless basestation 6, is contained in the radio wave transmitted by the wirelessbase station 6. For example, “Z001” is included as a base station ID inthe radio waves transmitted by the wireless base station 61. “Z002” and“Z003” are included as the base station ID in the radio wavesrespectively transmitted by the wireless base station 62 and thewireless base station 63. The wireless section 27 converts the receivedradio waves into a reception signal SR, and outputs the reception signalSR that has been converted to the control unit 21. The base station ID,which is information for identifying the wireless base station 6, isincluded in this reception signal SR.

The control unit 21 includes a movement control unit 211, an own vehicleposition measuring unit 212, a control device communication unit 213(wireless communication unit), and a flight state control unit 214.

The first storage unit 22 and the second storage unit 23 are realized byROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), HDD (Hard DiskDrive), a flash memory, and the like. The program executed by aprocessor may be stored in advance in the first storage unit 22, or maybe downloaded from an external device, a portable storage medium or viaa communication line.

The first storage unit 22 contains a flight vehicle information storageunit 221, a flight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222, acontrol mode information storage unit 224, a first identificationinformation storage unit 225, a basic program storage unit 226, awireless control mode program storage unit 227, and an autonomouscontrol mode program storage unit 228. The basic program storage unit226 stores programs for performing processes of the flight vehicle 2such as a communication process, a state management process, and aprocess required for maintaining flight. The wireless control modeprogram storage unit 227 stores a program for performing controlcommands received by wireless communication. The autonomous control modeprogram storage unit 228 stores a program for the flight vehicle 2 tofly by auto pilot. The control mode information storage unit 224 storesflag information showing the result of the control unit 21 havingdetermined the aforementioned control mode. The first identificationinformation storage unit 225 stores information that includes firstidentification information. The first identification information isidentification information that enables identification of the flightvehicle 2. The flight vehicle information storage unit 221 and theflight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222 are described indetail below.

The second storage unit 23 stores information that enablesidentification of the user using the communication service. Informationfor identifying the user using the communication service may include forexample a country code, an identification number of the communicationprovider providing the wireless communication service, an identificationnumber assigned to the user from the aforementioned communicationprovider, and may form the first identification information on the basisof at least some of those information or a combination of some of theinformation. The information stored in the second storage unit 23 may beused as identification information which identifies the user of theflight vehicle 2.

The first storage unit 22 and the second storage unit 23 may be affixedto a circuit substrate not illustrated, or may be detachably mounted toa housing unit (not illustrated) that is provided on the circuitsubstrate. Reading and writing of data to/from the first storage unit 22and the second storage unit 23 is performed by the control unit 21.

The own vehicle position measuring unit 212 of the control unit 21obtains the GPS signal SG from the GPS receiving unit 25, measures theown vehicle position, and generates own vehicle position information IP.

The control device communication unit 213 performs communication withthe wireless base station 6 on the basis of the identificationinformation stored in either the first identification informationstorage unit 225 or the second storage unit 23 via the wireless unit 27.

Based on the own vehicle position information IP generated by the ownvehicle position measuring unit 212 and information acquired via thewireless unit 27 and the control device communication unit 213, theflight state control unit 214 generates a flight control command CMD tocontrol the flight state of the flight vehicle 2. For example, theflight state control unit 214 receives information, such as airspaceinformation showing the flight plan to be flown by the flight vehicle 2,as information obtained through the wireless unit 27 and the controldevice communication unit 213.

The flight state control unit 214 may receive control from the flightpermitted airspace setting device 3 described below, and execute thecontrol mode process selected from a plurality of control modes. Forexample, the flight state control unit 214 may execute a wirelesscontrol mode that controls the flight state of the own flight vehicle 2on the basis of the control information which the control devicecommunication unit 213 received via the wireless base station 6. Theflight state control unit 214 may execute an autonomous control modethat controls the flight state of own flight vehicle 2 on the basis ofthe control information stored in advance in the first storage unit 22of own flight vehicle 2. The flight state control unit 214 switchesbetween the wireless control mode and the autonomous control mode on thebasis of the position of the own flight vehicle 2 measured by the ownvehicle position measuring unit 212 and flies the flight vehicle 2 by aflight control command CMD generated by the switched-to control mode(mode of the flight vehicle 2). For example, during execution of theautonomous control mode, the flight state control unit 214 decidespositions to be flown on the basis of the received airspace information,sets a course so as to pass through the decided positions, and causesautonomous flight to be carried out by the auto pilot along the setflight course.

The flight vehicle 2 may successively transmits airframe information andimages (circumferential landscape) captured by a camera (notillustrated) provided in the flight vehicle 2 to the user terminal 4.The user terminal 4 may also transmit control information which directsthe direction of movement based on that information to the flightvehicle 2. The airframe information may include identificationinformation of the flight vehicle 2, the attitude of the flight vehicle2 (direction and inclination), battery charge level, and the presence orabsence of failure of the rotor RT. In the case of a situation where theflight vehicle 2 cannot transmit images, the mode of the flight vehicle2 switches to automatic flight mode (autonomous control mode and theflight vehicle 2 may fly automatically to the place (destination)directed by the user terminal 4.

The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 and the like may transmitvicinity information relating to the peripheral positions of the flightvehicle 2 to the user terminal 4. The user may operate the flightvehicle 2 on the basis of the vicinity information using the userterminal 4. The vicinity information may also include the weather suchas rain and wind, the denseness degree of other flight vehicles (theexistence of other flight vehicles being recognized with a sensor orcamera), and information indicating the operation and stoppage of thewireless base station 6.

The flight vehicle 2 may have a collision prediction sensor (notillustrated) by which the flight vehicle 2 detects that a structureexists in a travel direction, or the approach of another flight vehicleor a bird. On the basis of the detection by the collision predictionsensor, the flight vehicle 2 predicts a collision and outputs an alarmsignal or gives a warning sound, or autonomously avoids a collision. Theoperation of the flight vehicle 2 autonomously avoiding a collision maybe given priority over an operation based on manipulation of the userterminal 4.

The flight state control unit 214 may set the mode of the flight vehicle3 to the autonomous control mode when the radio wave quality is bad, forexample, when the size of radio waves which the control apparatuscommunication unit 213 has received from the wireless base station 6 isless than a predetermined value. By information from other flightvehicles, the flight state control unit 214 may obtain as statisticaldata whether the radio field intensity of a certain location of acertain route is weak, and determine whether or not the radio wavequality is bad on the basis of that statistical data.

Which mode the flight vehicle 2 is in (for example, the radio controlmode (user maneuvering mode) or autonomous control mode (automaticoperative method mode)) may be displayed in real time by the userterminal 4.

The movement control unit 211 receives own position information IPgenerated by the own vehicle position measuring unit 212 and attitudedetection signal SB generated by attitude detecting unit 26, and adjuststhe driving amount of the motor 24 to stabilize the attitude duringflight of the flight vehicle 2. The movement control unit 211 receivesthe flight control command CMD generated by the flight state controlunit 214 and flies the flight vehicle 2 by controlling the drivingamount of the motor 24 so that the flight vehicle 2 reaches the targetposition.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the flight permitted airspace settingdevice 3 according to the present embodiment. The flight permittedairspace setting device 3 includes a control unit 31, a storage unit 32,an input and output section 33, and a communication IF (interface) unit35.

The storage unit 32 is realized by ROM, RAM, HDD, or flash memory. Theprogram executed by a processor may be stored in advance in the storageunit 32, or may be downloaded from an external device. The program maybe installed in the storage unit 32 by a portable storage medium housingthe program being mounted in a drive device not illustrated. The storageunit 32 includes a flight vehicle model information storage unit 321(model information storage unit) and a flight airspace informationstorage unit 322. The details of each of the above-mentioned units aredescribed below.

An input and output unit 33 includes a display unit, a keyboard and thelike not illustrated. The input and output unit 33 receives operationsto the flight permitted airspace setting device 3, and notifies an inputand output processing unit 319 described below about the operations. Theinput and output unit 33 displays the control state of the control unit31 by control from the input and output processing unit 319.

The communication IF unit 35 is an interface which communicates with theflight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 through the communicationnetwork 5 and the wireless base station 6 by control of the control unit31.

The control unit 31 includes a flight vehicle control processing unit311, a flight airspace setting unit 312, a setting device communicationunit 313 (communication unit), a flight vehicle pilot management unit315, a flight management unit 317, a flight state control informationtransmitting unit 318, and the input and output processing unit 319.

The flight vehicle control processing unit 311 communicates with theuser terminal 4 and the flight vehicle 2 through the communication IFunit 35. The flight vehicle control processing unit 311 transmitsinformation such as an operation screen for controlling the flightvehicle 2 to the user terminal 4, and receives from the user terminal 4operations of the user detected by the user terminal 4. The flightvehicle control processing unit 311 transmits information correspondingto the operations of the user that have been received to the flightvehicle 2 to fly the flight vehicle 2.

The flight airspace setting unit 312 acquires position informationprovided from the user terminal 4 showing the positions scheduled to beflown by the flight vehicle 2, generates airspace informationdesignating airspace for flying the flight vehicle 2, and writes theairspace information to the flight airspace information storage unit322. The airspace information includes information showing the flightplan of the flight vehicle 2.

The flight airspace setting unit 312 may acquire the place of departureand destination of the flight vehicle 2 from the user the user terminal4. The flight airspace setting unit 312 may set a flight path thatavoids a flight prohibited region such as an airport on the basis of theplace of departure and destination of the flight vehicle 2. The flightairspace setting unit 312 may calculate the time that the flight vehicle2 is expected to arrive at the destination on the basis of the place ofdeparture and destination of the flight vehicle 2.

The flight airspace setting unit 312 may acquire information indicatingthe battery charge level of the flight vehicle 2 from the flight vehicle2. The flight airspace setting unit 312 may judge whether the flightvehicle 2 can reach the destination by the arrival target time on thebasis of the place of departure, destination, and battery charge levelof the flight vehicle 2. The flight airspace setting unit 312 may setthe flight path on the basis of whether the flight vehicle 2 is capableof reaching the destination by the arrival target time and the scheduledtime of arrival at the destination.

The flight airspace setting unit 312 may select a plurality of flightpaths as a flight path, rank the flight paths in order of precedence,and notify the user terminal 4 of information indicating the flightpaths, with each having a priority ranking. The priority ranking may bedecided on the basis of the battery charge level and the scheduled timeof arrival. The flight airspace setting unit 312 may notify the userterminal 4 of information indicating the plurality of flight pathshaving a priority ranking. The user may select one of the plurality offlight paths using the user terminal 4. The flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 may set the selected flight path as the path of theflight vehicle 2.

When an event affecting the flight of the flight vehicle 2 has occurred,the flight airspace setting unit 312 may set a new flight path. Specificexamples of events that effect the flight of the flight vehicle 2 mayinclude weather anomalies during flight of the flight vehicle 2(windstorm, lightning, thunderstorm and the like), an accident involvingthe flight vehicle 2, and stoppage of the wireless base station 6. Theflight airspace setting unit 312 may notify the user terminal 4 ofinformation indicating that the new flight path has been set. Thereby,the user can learn that a new flight path has been set. When an eventaffecting the flight of the flight vehicle 2 has occurred, the flightpermitted airspace setting device 3 may select a plurality of flightpaths as a new flight path, rank the flight paths in order ofprecedence, and notify the user terminal 4 of information indicating theflight paths, with each having a priority ranking. The user may selectone of the plurality of flight paths using the user terminal 4. Theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 may set the selected flightpath as the new flight path.

Along with the flight path, the flight airspace setting unit 312 may setthe expected weather information, the required amount of electricalpower to the destination, and a speed limit of the flight vehicle 2.When the flight vehicle 2 has approached, by a predetermined distance ormore, airspace in which flight of the flight vehicle 2 is prohibited,the flight airspace setting unit 312 may set the mode of the flightvehicle 2 to a wireless control mode that controls the flight state ofthe flight vehicle 2 on the basis of control information received viathe wireless base station 6.

The setting device communication unit 313 (communication unit) transmitsairspace information stored in the flight airspace information storageunit 322 as information indicating the flight plan of the flight vehicle2 via the communication IF unit 35. When the flight airspace informationstorage unit 322 stores three-dimensional map information, the airspaceinformation being transmitted may include that three-dimensional mapinformation. The setting device communication unit 313 sends theairspace information to the flight vehicle control device 20 via thewireless base station 6, and causes the flight vehicle 2 to fly inaccordance with the airspace information.

The flight vehicle pilot management unit 315 manages the flight vehiclepilot (user) piloting the flight vehicle 2 by operation of the userterminal 4. The flight management unit 317 manages the flight state ofthe flight vehicle 2. Based on the determination result of the flightstate of the flight vehicle 2 by the flight management unit 317, theflight state control information transmitting unit 318 transmitsinformation for controlling the flight to the flight vehicle 2. Forexample, information that guides the flight of the flight vehicle 2 to asafe state is included in the information transmitted by the flightstate control information transmitting unit 318 to the flight vehicle 2.The input and output processing unit 319 receives various operations tothe flight permitted airspace setting device 3, and displays operationscreens relating to those operations.

Referring to FIG. 5, an outline of the process of managing the flight ofthe flight vehicle 2 in the flight permitted airspace setting system 1will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart that shows an outline of theprocess procedure of managing the flight of a flight vehicle 2 in theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 of the present embodiment.The process of managing the flight of the flight vehicle 2 shown in FIG.5 is carried out for the flight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 thathave been registered in advance.

After the advance registration of the flight vehicle 2 and user terminal4, the flight vehicle pilot management unit 315 receives a request fromthe user terminal 4. The flight vehicle pilot management unit 315carries out an authentication process to confirm whether the user whosent the request is qualified as a pilot of the flight vehicle 2 (StepS11).

Next, when a user is qualified, the flight management unit 317 judgeswhether there is a request to add or change a flight plan (Step S12).When adding a new flight plan, the flight management unit 317 performsregistration of the flight plan to be added to update the flight vehicleairspace information (Step S13), notifies the flight vehicle 2, of theflight plan that has been updated by registration, and performs theprocess of Step S15. When changing a flight plan that is registered, theflight management unit 317 performs a change process to update theflight vehicle airspace information 122. (Step S14), notifies the flightvehicle 2 of the flight plan that has been updated by the change, andperforms the process of Step S15.

Next, when either process of Step S13 and Step S14 is completed, or whenusing an already registered flight plan, the flight management unit 317determines whether or not to perform flight control on the basis ofinformation from the user terminal 4 (Step S15). When not performingflight control, the flight management unit 317 ends the series ofprocesses shown in FIG. 5. When performing flight control, the flightmanagement unit 317 carries out a process to specify the state of theflight vehicle 2 that is the object of flight control (Step S16).

Next, the flight management unit 317 manages the flight of the flightvehicle 2 on the basis of the airspace information (Step S17). Theflight management unit 317 for example controls the flight of the flightvehicle 2 by control of the flight vehicle control processing unit 311.

Hereinbelow, a more specific example of the process of managing flightof the flight vehicle 2 in the flight permitted airspace setting system1 is shown and described in detail.

(Advance Registration of Flight Vehicle and User)

The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 performs a process ofregistering the flight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 as terminaldevices of the flight permitted airspace setting system 1 prior toflight. For example, a flight vehicle model information storage unit 321of the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 pairs and storesidentification information for identifying the flight vehicle 2 and theuser terminal 4. The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 managesthe flight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 whose device identificationinformation is stored in the flight vehicle model information storageunit 321 as terminal devices of the flight permitted airspace settingsystem 1 to support the flight control of the flight vehicle 2. Incontrast, for a flight vehicle 2 that is an unregistered device andtherefore whose identification information is not stored in the flightvehicle model information storage unit 321, the flight permittedairspace setting device 3 does not support flight control. When makingan unregistered flight vehicle 2 and user terminal 4 terminal devices ofthe flight permitted airspace setting system 1, the flight permittedairspace setting device 3 carries out a process of registering theunregistered flight vehicle 2 and user terminal 4. Thereby, the flightpermitted airspace setting device 3 enables processing of the flightvehicle 2 and the user terminal 4, post registration, as target terminaldevices.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the flight vehicle modelinformation stored in the flight vehicle model information storage unit321. The flight vehicle model information includes information thatassociates a flight vehicle management number, model information,classification information, user identification information, firstidentification information, and second identification information. Theflight vehicle management number is management information of the flightvehicle 2. The model information is a model code for identifying themodel name or model of the flight vehicle 2. The classificationinformation is information that shows the result of classifying themodel of the flight vehicle 2. The user identification information isidentification information that enables identification of the userterminal 4. The first identification information is identificationinformation that enables identification of the flight vehicle 2. Thesecond identification information is identification information thatenables identification of the user of the flight vehicle 2. Theabove-mentioned flight vehicle model information constitutes a datagroup for every flight vehicle 2, and is stored in the flight vehicletype information storage unit 321. The flight permitted airspace settingdevice 3 obtains the above-mentioned information showing thecorrespondence between the flight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 fromthe user terminal 4 and writes the information in the flight vehicletype information storage unit 321.

When the flight vehicle information storage unit 221 of the flightvehicle 2 stores a flight vehicle management number, model information,model code and classification information, the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 may obtain the flight vehicle management number, modelinformation, model code and classification information from the flightvehicle information storage unit 221 of the flight vehicle 2 and performstorage in the flight vehicle model information storage unit 321.

(Airspace Managed for Each Flight Vehicle)

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 sets airspace that allowsflying for each flight vehicle 2, and manages the flight state for eachflight vehicle 2. The flight permitted airspace setting system 1classifies and manager airspace as follows.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 broadly divides theairspace of a target range into flight possible airspace and flightprohibited airspace ZZ. The flight prohibited airspace ZZ is airspace inwhich flight of all flight vehicles 2 is prohibited. The flight possibleairspace is airspace in which flight is permitted or not permitteddepending on conditions determined for each flight vehicle 2. The flightpermitted airspace setting system 1 for example classifies flightpossible airspace into one of the following airspaces in accordance withthe conditions.

-   -   Airspace ZA which may be flown regardless of the airframe as        long as the user is a specific user.    -   Airspace ZB which may be flown regardless of the user if that        airframe class.    -   Airspace ZD which may be flown if that airframe and a specified        user.    -   Airspace ZC which may be flown if that airframe class and a        specified user.

When the flight conditions required of each flight vehicle 2 satisfy theconditions of any airspace of the aforementioned classification, theflight permitted airspace setting system 1 makes that airspace flightpermitted airspace as airspace corresponding to the satisfiedconditions. When the conditions are not satisfied, the airspace is madeflight not-permitted airspace as airspace corresponding to theunsatisfied conditions.

Flight conditions in airspace may differ in individual cases, such asthe case of there being an airport within a target airspace or near thatairspace, and airspace not beyond a predetermined distance from thatairport being made airspace that cannot be flown, or the case of flightbeing allowed, with restrictions, when approval is obtained. In thesecases, the flight airspace setting unit 312, for each airspace,determines and sets the flight conditions of positions specified bythree-dimensional position information on the basis of the latitude andlongitude of the ground surface corresponding to that airspace and thealtitude.

FIG. 7 is a diagram that shows an example of the flight airspaceinformation (flight plan of DR01) of the flight vehicle 2 stored in theflight airspace information storage unit 322. This flight airspaceinformation corresponds to the flight plan of a specific flight vehicle2. The same flight airspace information is generated for every flightvehicle 2 being managed and stored in the flight airspace informationstorage unit 322. Information that correlates a plan number, dateinformation, airspace information, base station identificationinformation, and user identification information is included in theflight airspace information storage unit 322.

The plan number is identification information that makes a series ofinformation specifying one flight of the flight vehicle 2 a flight plan,and enables identification of that flight plan. The date informationshows the period in which the flight of the flight plan is scheduled.When repeating the same flight, the period in which the flight isrepeated is indicated.

Airspace information is information for identifying the airspace wherethe flight vehicle 2 flies. For example, airspace information includesposition information of the flight vehicle 2, altitude information, basestation identification information, airspace determination information,and the like.

Position information is information which indicates the airspace inwhich the flight vehicle 2 is to be flown by latitude, longitude, andthe like. For example, the position information may be information thatshows the range in which flight is planned, or may be information thatindicates the order in which transit points in a flight course are to bepassed. The position information may also instead be information whichshows the region that is divided based on other units.

Altitude information is information that shows the altitude range inwhich the flight vehicle 2 is to be flown, and for example is stipulatedin a length unit. For example, the following conditions can be indicatedby this altitude information. For example, condition (1) is a conditionthat permits flight when the altitude is less than 150 m and prohibitsflight when the altitude exceeds 150 m. Condition (2) is a conditionthat gives priority to autonomous flight by auto pilot when the altitudeis less than 150 m and a threshold altitude is exceeded. Condition (3)is a condition that gives priority to control from the user terminal 4when under the threshold altitude. The aforementioned are merelyexamples, with conditions not being limited thereto.

The base station identification information is identificationinformation of the wireless base station 6 which includes the regionspecified by the position information in a communication range (cell).The airspace determination information sets the region specified by theposition information as airspace, and shows the classification result ofthat airspace.

The user identification information is identification information thatenables identification of the user terminal 4, and is used asinformation for identifying a user.

Information based on a plan that a user requests, and managementinformation for flying the flight vehicle 2 with regard to thestipulated conditions are included in the flight airspace informationstorage unit 322.

For example, in FIG. 7, the flight vehicle management number shows theflight plan corresponding to the flight plan of the flight vehicle 2 ofDR01. The flight plan corresponding to plan numbers U1 and U2 isinformation based on a plan requested by the user. The plan number U1indicates that flight at altitude H1 or below is scheduled at theposition designated as “latitude/longitude range” from start time T1 toend time T2 on a certain day. For example, the flight airspace settingunit 312 obtains and writes the aforementioned information from the userterminal 4. On the basis of the aforementioned information, the flightairspace setting unit 312, referring to a conversion table that is notillustrated, determines the wireless base station 6 that has a cellcorresponding to the aforementioned position and writes that basestation ID (Z001) as the base station identification information. Theflight airspace setting unit 312 writes ZA as the airspace determinationinformation or the cell whose base station ID is determined to be Z001.

For example, the information corresponding to plan numbers M1, M2, andM3 and the like is management information for flying the flight vehicle2 in accordance with stipulated conditions. Plan number M1 indicatesthat the movement from the current position of the flight vehicle 2 tothe landing point is at all times flight at altitude range A. Plannumber M2 indicates that flying within a designated altitude range atthe present latitude/longitude. The altitude at which the flight vehicle2 flies is subject to the constraints of an altitude range that isrestricted with rules, a range in which a collision of an obstructioncan be avoided, and a range in which radio waves MAP of the wirelessbase station 6 reach. When plan number M2 is specified, the flightvehicle 2 corrects its altitude so as to be within the designatedaltitude range. The plan number M3 indicates a flight prohibitedairspace ZZ, and that the wireless base station 6, which is identifiedby Z011 . . . or the like is included in that range. When movement tothe airspace designated by the plan number M3 is detected, the flightvehicle 2 aborts flight within that range. For example, the flightvehicle 2 promptly moves out of the range.

The flight vehicle 2 uses information corresponding to the flightnumbers M1, M2, M3 as information that takes priority over airspaceconditions set at the request of the user. By setting restrictions basedon regulated rules as these flight numbers M1, M2, M3 and the like, itis possible to collectively set processes that are set for eachindividual airspace.

Identification information for identifying the flight vehicle 2 or theuser of the flight vehicle 2, and airspace information that indicatesflight permitted airspace or flight not-permitted airspace of the flightvehicle 2 are associated and stored in the flight airspace informationstorage unit 322 as described above. By constituting the flight airspaceinformation storage unit 322 in the above manner, it becomes possible tochange the method of flight control by the addition of altitude toconditions, unlike the case of conditions being specified only withlatitude and longitude.

In this way, the flight airspace setting unit 312 sets airspaceinformation that indicates flight permitted airspace or flightnot-permitted airspace as airspace information of the flight vehicle 2based on the model of the flight vehicle 2. The flight airspace settingunit 312, in addition to writing the set airspace information in theflight airspace information storage unit 322, sends the airspaceinformation to the control unit 21 of the flight vehicle 2 to be writtenin the flight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222 by thecontrol unit 21. The flight vehicle airspace information storage unit222 is for example constituted similarly to the flight airspaceinformation storage unit 322. The control unit 21 receive the airspaceinformation of the flight vehicle 2 and write the airspace informationto the flight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222 as is. Here,the airspace information of the flight vehicle 2 may also includethree-dimensional map information and route guide data.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1, by performing theaforementioned process, shares the airspace information of the flightvehicle 2 between the flight vehicle 2 and the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3.

The flight airspace setting unit 312 may specify the model of the flightvehicle 2 on the basis of flight vehicle model information registered inthe flight vehicle model information storage unit 321, or instead mayacquire the flight vehicle model information directly from the userterminal 4.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 uses the communicationservice by wireless communication through the wireless base station 6.For regions not easily reached by radio waves from the wireless basestation 6, the communication service may no longer be usable. The flightpermitted airspace setting system 1 may set a flight condition for thatkind of airspace separately from the condition based on theaforementioned position information.

(User Authentication)

Flight of the flight vehicle 2 may be restricted by the qualificationsand experience of the user. The flight permitted airspace setting system1 performs a user authentication process when carrying out variousprocesses in order to specify the user. One example of the userauthentication process in the flight permitted airspace setting system 1will be described.

For example, the flight permitted airspace setting system 1authenticates a user by the following method. The flight permittedairspace setting system 1 uses a wireless communication line that makesthe wireless base station 6 an access point. As mentioned above, theflight vehicle 2 and the user terminal 4 are terminal devices that use acommunication service that communicates via the wireless base station 6.

The network NW side equipment registers all terminal devices that permitcommunication as being terminal devices in which use of thecommunication service is permitted, and carries out a verificationprocess on each terminal device using the identification information ofthe terminal device. Identification information that enablesspecification of a terminal device, and identification information foridentifying the user using the communication service are used for theverification.

In the case of the flight vehicle 2 of the present embodiment, theidentification information that enables specification of a device isstored in the first identification information storage unit 225, and theidentification information for identifying the user using thecommunication service is stored in the second storage unit 23. Theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 communicates via the wirelessbase station 6 using the above-mentioned identification information. Theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 sets the airspace of thetarget flight vehicle 2 using the same identification information as theabove.

For example, in the flight permitted airspace setting system 1, it ispossible to constitute the second storage unit 23 as an IC card. A SIM(subscriber identity module) card is known as an example of an IC card.An IMSI (international mobile subscriber identity) that can specify of acommunication user is written in the SIM card.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 uses the identificationinformation written in the SIM card to specify the user of thecommunication service.

The first method is a method that performs identification using a user'sidentification information stored in the second storage unit 23 (SIMcard) of the flight vehicle 2. For example, the control unit 21 readsthe identification information IMSI from the second storage unit 23 (SIMcard) of the flight vehicle 2 and notifies the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 of authentication information generated on the basis ofthe identification information IMSI. The flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 stores in advance authentication information of theflight vehicle 2 or authentication information generated on the basis ofthe identification information IMSI, and performs collation with thereceived authentication information.

The second method is a method of performing identification using auser's identification information stored in the storage unit (SIM card)of the user terminal 4 that is used when flying the flight vehicle 2.For example, the user terminal 4 includes a control unit 41, a firststorage unit 42, and a second storage unit 43 (refer to FIG. 1). Thefirst storage unit 42 and the second storage unit 43 correspond to thefirst storage unit 22 and the second storage unit 23 in terms of storingidentification information. The control unit 41 of the user terminal 4reads the identification information IMSI from the second storage unit43 and notifies the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 ofauthentication information generated on the basis of the identificationinformation IMSI. The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 storesin advance the identification information IMSI of the user terminal 4 orauthentication information generated on the basis of the identificationinformation IMSI, and performs collation with the receivedauthentication information. Since it is possible to perform userauthentication without using the flight vehicle 2, this second method issuited to the case of for example performing registration or change of aflight plan prior to flight.

The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 may specify a user byeither method of the above-mentioned two methods, and may specify thatthe combination of the flight vehicle 2 and the user is a propercombination by combining both methods.

(Registration Process of the Flight Plan)

FIG. 8 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of the flight planregistration process of the present embodiment. The control unit 31 ofthe flight permitted airspace setting device 3 obtains flight-planinformation that shows the flight plan of the flight vehicle 2 for whichregistration is planned from the user terminal 4 (Step S131). Forexample, the user terminal 4 displays a two-dimensional orthree-dimensional map, and receives an operation of the user directingthe flight of the flight vehicle 2. For example, the user terminal 4receives operations specifying the model of the flight vehicle, useridentification information, the flight vehicle takeoff and landinglocations, the flight destination, the time, and the purpose of theflight indicating processes to be carried out during flight. The userterminal 4 transmits information corresponding to the receivedoperations to the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 asflight-plan information.

The flight management unit 317 verifies whether or not the flight planof the obtained flight plan information is valid on the basis of flightvehicle model information stored in the flight vehicle type informationstorage unit 321 (Step S132) and determines whether or not to approvethe flight plan (Step S133). For example, on the basis of the modelinformation of the flight vehicle 2 and the user identificationinformation, the flight management unit 317 verifies whether or not theflight vehicle model information corresponds to the flight plan of theflight vehicle 2 that is registered in advance in the flight vehicletype information storage unit 321, and that the airspace scheduled to beflown through according to the flight plan is included in the airspacefor which the flight vehicle 2 has permission. The flight managementunit 317, upon determining that the flight plan should be approved,notifies the user terminal 4 of the approval of the flight plan (StepS134). The flight management unit 317 registers the approved flight planin the flight airspace information storage unit 322 (Step S135),notifies the flight vehicle 2 of the approved flight plan (Step S136),and ends the series of processing.

When the flight plan is determined to not be one that should beapproved, the flight management unit 317 notifies the user terminal 4 ofnon-approval of the flight plan (Step S137), and ends the series ofprocessing. When the flight vehicle 2 has received notification of theapproved flight plan, the flight state control unit 214 writes thatflight plan to the flight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222for updating.

The flight management unit 317, by referring to the model information ofthe flight vehicle 2 as described above, may also set a flight conditionbased on the result of the model, and model classification.

(Flight Plan Change Process)

FIG. 9 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of the flight plan changeprocess of the present embodiment. The control unit 31 of the flightpermitted airspace setting device 3 obtains a request to change flightplan information that has been registered from user terminal 4 (StepS141). The control unit 31 determines whether the flight plan is validon the basis of the flight vehicle model information stored in theflight vehicle type information storage unit 321. The flight managementunit 317 determines whether or not the flight plan information that isthe object of the obtained change request is stored in the flightairspace information storage unit 322, and whether the flight plan ofthe flight-plan information is a flight plan that should be changed(Step S143). When the flight plan is determined to be a flight plan thatshould be changed, the flight management unit 317 notifies the userterminal 4 of the flight plan change (Step S144). The flight managementunit 317 registers the changed flight plan with the flight airspaceinformation storage unit 322 (Step S145), notifies the flight vehicle 2of the changed flight plan (Step S146), and ends the series ofprocessing.

When the flight plan is not a flight plan that should be changed, theflight management unit 317 notifies the user terminal 4 that the requestto change the flight plan has not been completed (Step S147), and endsthe series of processing.

The flight state control unit 214 of the flight vehicle 2 that hasreceived the notification of the changed flight plan writes the flightplan to the flight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222 forupdating.

(Specification of State of Flight Vehicle)

The flight vehicle 2 detects a communication request sent from theflight permitted airspace setting device 3, and as a response to thatrequest notifies the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 of theinformation that the flight vehicle 2 has obtained while in-flight. Theflight management unit 317, by receiving the response from the flightvehicle 2, specifies whether the flight vehicle 2 is in a flightpreparation state or flying.

(Control Based on Airspace)

In addition to the aforementioned specification of the state of theflight vehicle 2, the flight permitted airspace setting device 3monitors the flight state of the flying flight vehicle 2, and controlsthe flight of the flight vehicle 2 as required so that the flightvehicle 2 does not deviate from airspace.

The flight management unit 317 obtains information indicating theposition of the flight vehicle 2 by a method given below to detect theflight situation from the information indicating the obtained position.For example, the flight vehicle 2 transmits a response that includes theown vehicle position information IP. The flight management unit 317detects whether or not the position at which the flight vehicle 2 isflying is a proper position on the basis of the own vehicle positioninformation IP. In this case, the flight management unit 317 detectswhether or not the position according to the own vehicle positioninformation IP is included in a range shown by the airspace informationof the flight plan registered in the flight airspace information storageunit 322.

As another method, the flight management unit 317 may detect whether ornot the position at which the flight vehicle 2 is flying is a properposition on the basis of the base station ID of the wireless basestation, instead of the own vehicle position information IP. When theflight vehicle 2 transmits a response containing that base station ID,the flight management unit 317, upon receiving the response from theflight vehicle 2, detects whether or not the position indicated by thebase station ID contained in the response is included in the basestation IDs of the flight plan registered in the flight airspaceinformation storage unit 322, and thereby may detect whether or not theposition at which the flight vehicle 2 is flying at a proper position.

Although an example of the process of controlling the flight vehicle 2using the own vehicle position information IP is shown below, thepresent invention is not limited thereto, and the flight permittedairspace setting device 3 may control the flight vehicle 2 using thebase station ID by a similar method.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of airspace-basedcontrol of the present embodiment. The flight management unit 317 of theflight permitted airspace setting device 3, upon receiving the ownvehicle position information IP from the flight vehicle 2, judges basedon the own vehicle position information IP whether the airspace in whichthe flight vehicle 2 is flying is within the range of the flightpermitted airspace (Step S171). When the flight vehicle 2 is flyingwithin the range of the flight permitted airspace, the flight managementunit 317 performs control so that the flight vehicle 2 flies inaccordance with flight instructions designated by the user via the userterminal 4 (Step S172), and ends the series of processing shown in FIG.10.

On the other hand, when the flight vehicle 2 is flying outside the rangeof the flight permitted airspace, the flight state control informationtransmitting unit 318 notifies the user terminal 4 of the situation(Step S173). The control information transmitting unit 318 transmits aflight instruction specified by the flight management unit 317 to theflight vehicle 2, controls the flight of the flight vehicle 2 byinterrupting the flight instruction designated by the user (Step S174),and ends the series of processing shown in FIG. 10.

As described above, in addition to setting in advance the airspace inwhich the flight vehicle 2 flies, the flight permitted airspace settingdevice 3 controls the flight of the flight vehicle 2 that is flying in amanner deviating from the set airspace. The flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 repeatedly carries out the aforementioned series ofprocessing according to a predetermined cycle.

(Flight Control of Flight Vehicle)

The flight vehicle 2, in accordance with the procedure of the followingflight control, flies according to control from the user terminal 4through airspace set by the flight permitted airspace setting device 3.For example, in the case of the flight plan set by the flight permittedairspace setting device 3 indicating a transit point in a flight course,the flight vehicle 2 moves by autonomous flight via auto pilot along aflight course that interpolates the designated transit point.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart that shows the procedure of flight control in theflight vehicle 2 of the present embodiment. The flight state controlunit 214 of the flight vehicle 2 determines whether or not there is acontrol request from the flight management unit 317 or the flight statecontrol information transmitting unit 318 (Step S221).

Next, when there is a control request from the flight management unit317 or the flight state control information transmitting unit 318, theflight state control unit 214 carries out flight control according toinstructions of the flight management unit 317 or the flight statecontrol information transmitting unit 318 (Step S222), and ends theseries of processing shown in FIG. 11.

On the other hand, when there is no control request from the flightmanagement unit 317 or the flight state control information transmittingunit 318, the flight state control unit 214 compares the present flightposition and the airspace information on the basis of the flightposition of the flight vehicle 2 and the airspace information stored inthe flight vehicle airspace information storage unit 222 (Step S223),and determines whether or not the present flight position is within therange of the flight per airspace (Step S224).

Next, when the present flight position is within the range of the flightpermitted airspace, the flight state control unit 214 determines whetheror not the present altitude is within the range of a predeterminedaltitude (Step S225). The aforementioned predetermined altitude is thealtitude that is defined based on the range of the flight permittedairspace, and is a predetermined value that does not exceed the altitudelimit of the flight permitted airspace to the not-permitted side. Whenthe present altitude is within the range of the predetermined altitude,the flight state control unit 214 performs flight control in accordancewith the directions of the user (Step S227), and ends the series ofprocessing shown in FIG. 11. For example, a user instruction includes auser operation being detected by the user terminal 4, and informationconcerning the detected operation being transmitted to the flightpermitted airspace setting device 3. The control unit 31 generates aninstruction based on the information relating to the operation andtransmits at instruction to the flight vehicle 2. The flight statecontrol unit 214 receives that instruction, and executes flight controlin accordance with the aforementioned directions of the user.

When the present altitude is determined to not be within the range ofthe predetermined altitude based on the determination result of StepS225, the flight state control unit 214 executes autonomous flightcontrol in accordance with the flight plan (Step S228), and ends theseries of processing shown in FIG. 11.

When e present flight position is not within the range of the flightpermitted airspace, the flight state control unit 214 executesautonomous flight control that corrects the position at which the flightvehicle 2 is flying so as to be within the range of the flight permittedairspace (Step S229), and ends the series of processing shown in FIG.11.

The flight state control unit 214 repeatedly carries out theaforementioned series of processing according to a predetermined cycle.

According to the first embodiment described above, the flight vehiclecontrol device 20 includes either identification information storageunit of the first identification information storage unit 225 in whichidentification information for identifying the flight vehicle 2 isstored and the second storage unit 23 in which identificationinformation for identifying the user of the flight vehicle 2 is stored;the control device communication unit 213 that performs communicationwith the wireless base station 6 on the basis of the identificationinformation stored in the identification information storage unit; theown vehicle position measuring unit 212 that measures the position ofthe own flight vehicle 212; airspace information indicating flightpermitted airspace or flight not-permitted airspace that the controldevice communication unit 213 receives from the wireless base station 6;and the flight state control unit 214 that controls the flight state ofthe own flight vehicle on the basis of the own vehicle position measuredby the own vehicle position measuring unit 212. Thereby, it is possible,with a simpler configuration, to enhance reliability when controllingthe flight of a flight vehicle.

The flight state control information transmitting unit 318 of the flightpermitted airspace setting device 3, on the basis of the flight positionof the flight vehicle 2 and the airspace information stored in theflight airspace information storage unit 322, transmits flight statecontrol information for controlling the flight state of the flightvehicle 2 to the flight state control unit 214. For example, settinginformation that indicates whether or not to switch a control state forcontrolling the flight state of the flight vehicle 2 is one example ofthe flight state control information that the flight state control unit214 controls. Thus, the flight permitted airspace setting device 3, byperforming control by means of setting information that indicateswhether or not to switch the control state that controls the flightstate of the flight vehicle 2, is able to perform control that switchesthe flight state in the flight vehicle 2.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 also uses authenticationinformation of the user of the communication service used when using thenetwork NW mentioned above for the airspace setting process of theflight vehicle 2. For this reason, there is no need to defineinformation for a new authentication process, and moreover it ispossible to secure the desired reliability even with a simplifiedauthentication process.

(Modification of First Embodiment)

A modification of the first embodiment will be described.

The flight state control information transmitting unit 318 shown in thefirst embodiment, on the basis of the flight position of the flightvehicle 2 and the airspace information stored in the flight airspaceinformation storage unit 322, transmits flight state control informationfor controlling the flight state of the flight vehicle 2 to the flightstate control unit 214. One example illustrated that the flight statecontrol information controlled by the flight state control unit 214 inthe first embodiment is setting information that indicates whether notto switch the control state.

Instead, the flight state control information controlled by the flightstate control unit 214 in the modification may be information includinga control program executed by the flight state control unit 214. By thecontrol program that is updated or added, the flight state control unit214 carries out a process that differs from the process by the controlprogram prior to being updated or prior to being added.

As described above, according to the modification of the firstembodiment, it is possible to carry out precise control accordance withthe state, in addition to exhibiting the same effect as the firstembodiment.

Second Embodiment

A second embodiment will be described. The flight vehicle 2 of thesecond embodiment is constituted without providing the flight vehicleinformation storage unit 221 in the first storage unit 22. Also, theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 is constituted withoutproviding the flight vehicle type information storage unit 321 in thestorage unit 32. When model information storage units are not providedin the above manner, the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 setsthe flight permitted airspace of the flight vehicle 2 withoutidentifying each flight vehicle 2 or specifying the model of the flightvehicle 2.

Even if the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 does not includethe flight vehicle type information storage unit 321 in theaforementioned manner, setting of the airspace information (flightpermitted airspace) is possible by a method such as transmitting thenecessary information from the user terminal 4. In the abovementionedcase, the flight permitted airspace setting system 1 assumes a form ofthe user directly registering airspace information without relying onthe model information. Thus, in the case of being able to set theairspace information regardless of the airframe or model, the flightpermitted airspace setting system 1 can set the airspace requested bythe user terminal 4 for the flight vehicle 2 that is the setting target,without being limited by the airframe or model of the flight vehicle 2.

The second embodiment described above, in addition to exhibiting thesame effect as the first embodiment, can further simplify the settingprocess of the flight vehicle 2.

Third Embodiment

A third embodiment will be described. Although the flight permittedairspace setting system 1 of the first embodiment was described asincluding the flight vehicle 2 containing the flight vehicle controldevice 20, the flight permitted airspace setting device 3, and the userterminal 4, it is not limited thereto. In the flight permitted airspacesetting system 1 of the third embodiment, the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 may have the function of the user terminal 4 or viceversa.

The third embodiment described above, in addition to exhibiting the sameeffect as the first embodiment, can make the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 and the user terminal 4 one device.

Fourth Embodiment

A fourth embodiment will be described. In the fourth embodiment, theprocesses performed by the flight permitted airspace setting device 3and the user terminal 4 differ compared to the first embodiment.Hereinbelow this point will be described.

The flight permitted airspace setting device 3 determines the airspacewhere flight of the flight vehicle 2 is permitted on the basis ofinformation obtained from the user terminal 4 and rules determined inadvance. For example, regarding the process of determining the airspacethat permits flight by the flight vehicle 2, the process of FIG. 8described above will be referred to. After determining the airspace thatpermits flight by the flight vehicle 2, the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 generates an application program including informationindicating the airspace that permits flight, and stores the applicationprogram in the storage unit 32 to be downloadable. The above-mentionedapplication program is a program for controlling the flight vehicle 2that is executed by the control unit 41 of the user terminal 4.

The user terminal 4 downloads the above-mentioned application programfrom the flight permitted airspace setting device 3 and stores theapplication program in the first storage unit 42. For example, when theuser is actually flying the flight vehicle 2, the user launches theapplication program on the user terminal 4. The user terminal 4 receivesoperations of the user piloting the flight vehicle 2 by the execution ofthe application program by the control unit 41. The user terminal 4verifies whether the directions for piloting the flight vehicle 2 aredirections corresponding to the time and position of the flight planthat has been approved. Moreover, the user terminal 4 verifies whetherthe flight vehicle 2 is an approved flight vehicle. Thus, when flyingthe flight vehicle 2, the user terminal 4 solely determines whether thatflight is a flight approved in the flight plan, and controls the flightof the flight vehicle 2 by communicating with the flight vehicle 2without relaying communication through the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3. In that case, the user terminal 4 and the flightvehicle 2 communicate through the communication network 5 and thewireless base station 6.

The user terminal 4 continues to capture the position of the flightvehicle 2 while flying the flight vehicle 2. For example, when theflight vehicle 2 departs from the range of the flight permitted airspaceand deviates from the scheduled flight-plan route, the user terminal 4controls the flight of the flight vehicle 2 with priority over useroperations by the process of the application program. For example, aprocess of controlling the flight of the flight vehicle 2 that takespriority over user operations includes the user terminal 4 forciblycorrecting the flight route by adjusting the position of the flightvehicle 2 and restricting the flight so as not to fly in prohibitedairspace.

The fourth embodiment described above can reduce the processing by theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 and enhance responsivenesswhen controlling the flight vehicle 2 by distributing the process ofcontrolling the flight vehicle 2 to the user terminal 4, in addition toexhibiting the same effect as the first embodiment.

As described above, the flight vehicle control device 20 is controlledon the basis of control instructions generated by the user terminal 4that has detected remote operations of the flight vehicle 2 by the user.Control instructions generated by the user terminal 4 are included inthe control information received via the wireless base station 6.Moreover, control instructions for controlling the flight vehicle 2 froma remote place that are generated by the flight permitted airspacesetting device 3 may be included as control information received via thewireless base station 6. For example, by enabling the performance ofsuch control, during an emergency in which the flight vehicle 2 can nolonger receive control from the user terminal 4 for some reason, theflight permitted airspace setting device 3 may instead carry out thatcontrol.

When a new flight route has been set during flight, the flight route andthree-dimensional map, in addition to being set in the flight vehicle 2,may also be stored in the user terminal 4. The user terminal 4 may alsoperform route guidance using the flight route and three-dimensional map.When setting a new route, the required amount of electrical power to thedestination and the time required for reaching the destination arerecalculated, and a determination may be made on whether the destinationis reachable on the basis of the calculation result. When adetermination is made that the destination cannot be reached, the userterminal 4 may show a route to a location that can supply electricalpower to the flight vehicle 2.

The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 may be constituted byaffixing the second storage unit 23 to a circuit substrate instead ofconstituting the second storage unit 23 as an IC card. However, theflight permitted airspace setting system 1 is not limited to such aconstitution. The flight permitted airspace setting system 1 may storedata generated on the basis of an IMSI by inclusion in theidentification information of the second storage unit 23.

In addition, in the case of the constitution as described above, thesecond identification information may be stored by allocating the secondstorage unit 23 to a portion of the first storage unit 22.

The embodiments and modifications of the present invention are describedabove, but are simply examples for the purpose of describing the presentinvention and the scope of the present invention is not limited to theseembodiments and these modifications alone. The embodiments andmodifications thereof may be put into practice in various further modes,and various omissions, replacements, and modifications can be made in arange without departing from the scope of the invention. Theseembodiments and modifications thereof fall within the scope and gist ofthe invention and fall within the invention recited in the claims andtheir equivalents.

Each of the devices mentioned above includes a computer therein. Theprocedure of each process described above is stored in acomputer-readable recording medium in a program format, and the processis performed by the computer reading and executing the program. In thiscase, the computer-readable recording medium includes a magnetic disk, amagneto optical disc, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a semiconductor memory, orthe like. In addition, the computer program may be delivered to thecomputer by a communication line, and the computer that has received thedelivery may perform the delivered program.

In addition, the program described above may be one for realizing someof the functions described above. In addition, the program may be adifferential file (differential program), that is, one that can berealized by combining the functions described above with the programthat is already stored in the computer system.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention may be applied to a flight vehicle control device,a flight permitted airspace setting system, and a flight vehicle controlmethod and program.

DESCRIPTION OF THE REFERENCE SYMBOLS

1: Flight permitted airspace setting system

2: Flight vehicle

20: Flight vehicle control device

3: Flight permitted airspace setting device

1. An unmanned flight vehicle comprising: a rotor; a motor rotating therotor; and a flight vehicle control device, controlling the motor andthe unmanned flight vehicle, comprising: a memory storing identificationinformation, wherein the identification information comprisesidentification information that enables identification of a user of acommunication service for receiving first control information orairspace information comprising information about an airspace in whichthe flight vehicle flies via a wireless base station by the unmannedflight vehicle; and a processor that controls the unmanned flightvehicle to communicate with the wireless base station based on thestored identification information, wherein the processor controls aflight state of the unmanned flight vehicle based on the first controlinformation or the airspace information received via the wireless basestation by using the identification information, and the processorcontrols the unmanned flight vehicle based on a quality of a radio wavethat the unmanned flight vehicle has received from the wireless basestation.
 2. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 1, whereinthe memory stores a program for the unmanned flight vehicle to fly byauto pilot, and the processor controls the unmanned flight vehicle byauto pilot based on the stored program, depending on the quality of theradio wave.
 3. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 2, whereinthe processor controls the unmanned flight vehicle by auto pilot basedon the stored program, in a case where a size of the radio wave is lessthan a predetermined value.
 4. The unmanned flight vehicle according toclaim 1, wherein the processor receives the airspace information via thewireless base station by using the identification information andcontrols the flight state of the unmanned flight vehicle based on theairspace information received via the wireless base station by using theidentification information, and the airspace information comprisesinformation that indicates a flight course along which the unmannedflight vehicle flies.
 5. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim4, wherein the processor controls the unmanned flight vehicle along theflight course by auto pilot.
 6. The unmanned flight vehicle according toclaim 1, wherein the processor receives the airspace information via thewireless base station by using the identification information andcontrols the flight state of the unmanned flight vehicle based on theairspace information received via the wireless base station by using theidentification information, and the processor determines whether aposition at which the unmanned flight vehicle is flying is within arange of a flight permitted airspace associated with the unmanned flightvehicle.
 7. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 6, whereinwhen the processor determines that the position at which the unmannedflight vehicle is flying is not within the range of the flight permittedairspace, the processor controls the unmanned flight vehicle by autopilot so that the unmanned flight vehicle flies within the flightpermitted airspace.
 8. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 1,wherein the processor receives the first control information via thewireless base station by using the identification information, the firstcontrol information comprising an instruction to control flight of theunmanned flight vehicle, and the processor controls flight of theunmanned flight vehicle based on the first control information.
 9. Theunmanned flight vehicle according to claim 8, the processor controls theunmanned flight vehicle executing an autonomous control mode forcontrolling the flight state of the unmanned flight vehicle based onsecond control information stored in the memory, the second controlinformation including a program for the unmanned flight vehicle to flyby auto pilot.
 10. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 1,wherein the identification information comprises an identificationnumber of a communication provider providing the communication serviceor an identification number assigned to the user from the communicationprovider.
 11. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 1, whereinthe identification information comprises information related to aninternational mobile subscriber identity (IMSI).
 12. The unmanned flightvehicle according to claim 2, wherein the identification informationcomprises an identification number of a communication provider providingthe communication service or an identification number assigned to theuser from the communication provider.
 13. The unmanned flight vehicleaccording to claim 2, wherein the identification information comprisesinformation related to an international mobile subscriber identity(IMSI).
 14. An unmanned flight vehicle comprising: a rotor; a motorrotating the rotor; and a flight vehicle control device, controlling themotor and the unmanned flight vehicle, comprising: a memory storingidentification information, wherein the identification informationcomprises information that enables identification of a user of acommunication service for receiving airspace information via a wirelessbase station by the unmanned flight vehicle, and the airspaceinformation comprises information about an airspace in which the flightvehicle flies; and a processor that controls the unmanned flight vehicleto communicate with the wireless base station based on the storedidentification information, wherein the processor controls a flightstate of the unmanned flight vehicle based on the airspace informationreceived via the wireless base station by using the identificationinformation, and the processor controls the unmanned flight vehicleexecuting autonomous flight control that corrects a flight position ofthe unmanned flight vehicle at which the flight vehicle is flying so asto be within a range of a flight permitted airspace when the flightposition is not within the range of the flight permitted airspace. 15.The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 14, wherein the processorreceives the airspace information via the wireless base station by usingthe identification information, and the airspace information comprisesinformation that indicates a flight course along which the unmannedflight vehicle flies.
 16. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim15, wherein the processor controls the unmanned flight vehicle along theflight course by auto pilot.
 17. The unmanned flight vehicle accordingto claim 14, wherein the processor receives first control informationvia the wireless base station by using the identification information,the first control information comprising an instruction to controlflight of the unmanned flight vehicle, and the processor controls flightof the unmanned flight vehicle based on the first control information.18. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 14, wherein theidentification information comprises an identification number of acommunication provider providing the communication service or anidentification number assigned to the user from the communicationprovider.
 19. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 15, whereinthe identification information comprises an identification number of acommunication provider providing the communication service or anidentification number assigned to the user from the communicationprovider.
 20. The unmanned flight vehicle according to claim 14, whereinthe identification information comprises information related to aninternational mobile subscriber identity (IMSI).
 21. The unmanned flightvehicle according to claim 15, wherein the identification informationcomprises information related to an international mobile subscriberidentity (IMSI).